Nature in the Heart of England: A personal view of nature at the junction of Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and Northamptonshire - also known as "Banburyshire". Sometimes further afield too!

Tuesday, 25 November 2014

Upper Wardington: Polecat

Yesterday I discovered a "road-kill" polecat slumped up against the kerb near the middle of the village. Polecats are more often seen dead than alive - I've only ever seen one alive, but several like this, killed by a car.

polecat, deceased

Polecats have done well in recent decades, spreading back across their former English range from western outposts - a resurgence they share with the buzzard and raven.

Other members of the Mustelid mammal family found in our area - stoat, weasel, otter, mink and badger - are also vulnerable to being hit by vehicles during their nocturnal ramblings.